Chiesa di San Damiano (Church of St. Damian), Assisi (must see)

In 1205, it was in San Damiano that Francis of Assisi received his divine call to undertake repairs, and where he brought Saint Clare and her followers, "pouring the sweetness of Christ into her ears". Clare stayed here until her death, although the nuns departed seven years later. After establishing the Poor Clares, Francis visited San Damiano only once more, towards the end of his life. Suffering from illness and partial blindness, he composed the "Canticle of the Sun" here. His body was also briefly laid here after his death, fulfilling his promise to Clare that she would see him once more. The church was owned by Lord Lothian until 1983, after which it was transferred to the Friars Minor. They have maintained it as it was centuries ago, a stipulation set by Lothian in his bequest.

Uniquely among sites in Assisi with Franciscan ties, San Damiano preserves an ideal that is distinctly Franciscan – serene and rural, nestled among olive groves, cypresses, and wildflowers, overlooking the pastoral Spoleto Valley. A life-sized bronze statue of Saint Francis sits meditating, gazing out over the valley, sublimely absorbed in the divine presence in all things. Visitors are guided around the complex by signs, beginning outside with a fresco of Saint Roch, the saint called upon against infectious diseases, displaying a plague sore. Above the main entrance, a small balcony marks the spot from which Clare, brandishing the Sacrament, repelled a Saracen army threatening Assisi.

Inside, the church's nave, dating back to at least 1030, is simple and smoke-darkened, featuring a decayed wooden choir and lectern. To the right, there's a small window through which the priest of San Damiano threw the money Francis had given him for church repairs. Nearby, a tiny hole marks where Francis hid from his father’s anger for a month. Beyond some stairs leading to a terrace and small garden, there is a vestibule with a woodworm-infested choir and two frescoes, including a delicate "Madonna and Child" by an unidentified artist influenced by Giotto. Upstairs, there is an oratory and a small dormitory with a cross and flowers marking the place where Clare passed away. A door on the right opens to the cloisters, offering a peek at the refectory still furnished with its original table and oak benches.